Top 4 hybrid draft prospects that make too much sense for the Bills

With the Buffalo Bills’ signings of defensive backs Micah Hyde and Jordan Poyer, the need for a ‘Buffalo’ nickel defender is lessened, but still remains. Coach Sean McDermott has preached versatility as one of the most valuable traits that he covets in defenders and he utilized multiple defenders in a hybrid safety/linebacker role throughout his tenure as defensive coordinator of the Carolina Panthers. Should the Bills acquire a similarly-talented defensive back that can flow up and down the line of scrimmage, that would allow the veteran signings to fit into more defined roles within the secondary.

To that end, we’ve listed four 2017 draft candidates that can fit well into the Sean McDermott system as hybrid nickel or slot defenders, capable of wearing many hats in an aggressive 4-3 defense.

John Johnson, Boston College

Johnson is 6-foot tall and weighs around 205-pounds. He is a sure, solid tackler. At Boston College, Johnson was responsible for playing safety as well as cornerback – both outside and in the slot. That versatility sounds eerily similar to Micah Hyde coming out of Iowa in 2013.

Related

This year as a senior, Johnson was in more of a pure safety role, amassing 77 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, nine passes broken up and a team-leading three interceptions. Those ball-hawking skills and soft hands would do well either as Buffalo or as the pure free safety in the lineup.

Like this article?

Sign up for the Bills Wire email newsletter to get our top stories in your inbox every morning

Success

Thanks for signing up.
You'll be waking up a little more awesome tomorrow.